Nnadiebube Journal of Education

Philosophy of Education guides the practice of continuous assessment as it is through Philosophy of Education that the practice of continuous assessment is critically examined. In Anambra State public schools, the laborious nature of continuous assessment has made some teachers tend to avoid it. Consequently, this work aimed at examining Philosophy of Education and the practice of continuous assessment in Anambra State public secondary schools in order to identify its challenges and proffer strategies for better results. Three research questions were formulated to guide the study. Descriptive survey research design was adopted for the study. The population of the study consisted of 266 public secondary schools principals in Anambra State. No sampling was done owing to the manageable size of the population. Data were collected with researchers-developed questionnaire titled “the practice of continuous assessment in Anambra State public secondary schools questionnaire” (PCAAPSS). The questionnaire was validated by three experts in from Measurement and Evaluation and Curriculum Studies Unit in the Faculty of Education, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka. The reliability of the questionnaire was ascertained by pilot testing the instrument using similar respondents in Enugu State Nigeria which yielded a mean reliability coefficient of 0.78 using Cronbach alpha statistics. Mean was used to answer the research questions. The findings of the study revealed that lack of standardized assessment tools, insufficient qualified teachers and negative attitudes of teachers towards continuous assessment constitute the challenges to the practice of continuous assessment in Anambra State public secondary schools. The study further revealed that training of sufficient qualified teachers to acquire psychometric skills, motivation of teachers through enhanced salary and regular supervision of teachers are the strategies for tackling the challenges of the practice of continuous assessment in Anambra State public secondary schools. Based on the findings of the study, it was recommended among other things that school administrators are to ensure that resource persons are invited to train teachers on effective teaching modalities especially as it concerns continuous assessment. This will help them internalize the mechanisms of ensuring continuous assessment of studen

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